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ONEONTA, N.Y. -- Dr.
Todd Ellis, Assistant Professor of Meteorology in the
Earth Sciences Department
at the SUNY College at Oneonta, led a recent study that is the first to
measure accurately how often it rains or snows over the world's oceans. With
the support of CloudSat,
a satellite of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Dr. Ellis
has been able to use space-borne cloud-profiling radar to study clouds and
precipitation from space.
The scientific measurement of how often it rains or snows over the oceans
has been very difficult because of the lack of surface measurements. Using
data he compiled on the precipitation that CloudSat has observed since its
launch in 2006, Dr. Ellis demonstrated that the satellite detects
precipitation over the oceans very well. He found that it rains or snows
over the oceans 11.2% of the time, or 2.6 times more often than previously
believed based on measurements with non-radar instruments.
Dr. Ellis worked with a team of scientists from Colorado State University
on the project, including Dr. Graeme Stephens, the principal investigator
for the NASA CloudSat mission; Dr. John Haynes, who created the
precipitation measurement; and Dr. Tristan L'Ecuyer.
Dr. Ellis's findings will be published in his paper entitled "How often does
it rain over the global oceans? The perspective from CloudSat," which will
appear in a forthcoming issue of the journal "Geophysical Research Letters."
Commenting on his work, Dr. Ellis said, "This research is important
because, for the first time, we have a very reliable way of detecting
precipitation over all of the oceans. CloudSat's unique ability to detect
even light drizzle and snow is something no other satellite can do
reliably."
Ellis believes that the data from his research can be used to improve other
weather and climate studies.
"Climate models need to be able to accurately reproduce how often it
rains and snows in our current climate if we hope to be able to understand
how often it may rain in the future," said Ellis. "And as life on Earth
continues to stretch the amount of fresh water available, how often it will
rain or snow is one of the most important questions scientists have yet to
answer."
Dr. Ellis recently received a three-year $70,875
subcontract from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
through Colorado State University for a project that will continue his work
with CloudSat. His project will involve working with teachers and students
on the CloudSat Education Network, which is part of the educational and
public-outreach program of the NASA CloudSat satellite. Through the network,
educational institutions provide data to CloudSat scientists for their
research, and students have opportunities for hands-on participation in
research.
Dr. Ellis joined the SUNY Oneonta faculty in 2008. He holds a doctorate
in atmospheric science from Colorado State University, where he worked
previously as a research assistant.
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